What If?
by amandar2012
Summary: Elena and Stefan grew up next to each other in a small town. As time had gone by, their treasured childhood friendship slowly transitioned to an inseparable bond between two friends. Now as they start their last year of high school and their friendship continues to blossom, will they become something more? / OOC. All Human /
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey guys, this is my first VD Fanfiction, that isn't a one shot. It's really short, I know. Don't kill me. I just wanted to put it out there before continuing. I want your thoughts! So please review. If I continue or not depends on you guys. No pressure or anything, hehe. **

**xoxo**

* * *

Stefan rolled unto his side and slowly opened his eyes. The sun shined through his window, blinding him. He shut his eyes quickly. He really needed to buy new curtains to shut out the sunlight. He knew after tomorrow, he'd get rare doses of sleep so he needed to take advantage of it now. The day after tomorrow was the start of his last year of high school. He felt a chilly rush go through his body. It was scary knowing that in just a few years he'd be on his own. He didn't like to think about it much.

To the right of him, he heard his phone vibrating on his bedside table. He groaned, flipping to the other side of the bed. Without opening his eyes, he reached for his phone and tapped the green highlighted button on the screen.

"You better be awake." he heard from the other side of the phone.

"This better be important." He responded back, lifting his blanket over his head.

He heard her laugh and he smiled. "We were going to hang out today, remember?"

"What time is it?"

"It's almost twelve, you lazy bum." She said. "It's time to get up and get ready. I'll give you…" she paused to think. "…about half an hour and then I'll be over."

Before Stefan could respond, the phone line was dead. He dropped his hand to his bed and groaned again. He really didn't want to get up from his warm, safe haven. He sighed and lifted the covers off of him quickly. He felt a sudden cool rush hitting his bare chest. He sat up slowly, his eyes searching for his alarm clock for the time. 11:53A.M.

He jumped out of bed, heading across his room to the bathroom. He stripped off his boxers, exposing himself as he turned on the shower. He placed his iPhone on the bathroom counter, pressing play as he did so. One Night by Cobra Starship started playing.

He stepped into the warm water, shivering from the change in temperature. Around this time of the year, in the beginning of September, Mystic Falls was known for getting chilly pretty quickly. Just last week the temperature was up to 80 degrees out. Sometimes it baffled Stefan why his family hadn't moved out of this small town yet. His father, Giuseppe, came straight from Italy many years before Stefan or his older brother, Damon, was born. When he came to America, which is where he had met Stefan's mother, Elaine, who was originally from New Jersey. After getting married, they had moved to a small town in Virginia called Mystic Falls. A few years later, they had started their family.

When Stefan was twelve, his mother died of cancer. It was a hard time in his life and he relied a lot on his brother and his best friend. Since then, his father had tried his best to raise two teenage boys on his own. Stefan tried to be easy on him every once in a while. Damon was the problem; getting in trouble constantly. He was the headache of the family.

Stefan shut off the water, grabbing the towel on top of the railing of the shower curtain. He somewhat dried his brown hair with the towel and then wrapped it around his waist. Stepping out of the shower, he grabbed his phone off the counter and walked back into his room.

He hadn't remembered making plans today, but he didn't mind. Elena Gilbert had been his best friend since he could remember. They had been next door neighbors growing up and had automatically clicked when they met. To his dismay, she was also one of the most beautiful girls Stefan had ever laid eyes on. Sure, growing up he had never really noticed but once his hormones had started kicking… well… he noticed. They had been best friends for so long, though; he doubted that they could be anything more. They acted too much like siblings to ever be more.

He lightly threw his phone unto his bed and walked over to his dresser, rummaging through the drawers. He pulled out a pair of boxers and socks. He then walked over to his closet, grabbing a pair of jeans and a black V-neck. He chose to go simple today. He tossed the clothes on his bed and headed back to his bathroom to brush his teeth.

Stefan wasn't going to lie, he felt a little more than "friendship feelings" for Elena. He was just too scared to admit it. The fact that he'd know they would never be together scared him out of admitting it. He had realized this the summer before when they were at their friend, Tyler's bonfire. They had been drinking and were playing truth or dare around the fire. Caroline, another friend of theirs, had dared Stefan to kiss Elena. He had obviously gone through with the dare, but he couldn't help but feel sparks when his lips had touched hers.

He shook his head, finishing his daily routine and walked back into his room. He got dressed in a good amount of time before he heard a knock on his door.

"Are you presentable?" the voice on the other side of the door asked.

Stefan glanced at his alarm clock. 12:36PM. Elena.

He smiled. "Come in," he shouted, walking back into his bathroom to fix his damn hair. He heard the door open and then close.

"Are you almost ready, kid?" he heard her ask from the other room.

"Just about," he said, washing the gel off his hands. "What are we doing today anyways?"

She gasped. "I feel so unloved. You don't sound excited at all to be spending time with me!"

Stefan walked out of the bathroom, laughing. She was sitting on his bed, the sunlight hitting her just right. She was wearing jeans and a gray hoodie. Her dark, sleek hair was up in a ponytail. He felt his heart starting to race a little faster.

"I love spending time with you," he said, walking over to his bed. "I'm just wondering if there's a specific goal for today." He reached for his phone which lay on his comforter.

She shrugged. "Nothing specific in mind." She said, snatching the phone before he had grabbed it. She got up quickly from the bed, his phone in her hands. "I guess we'll figure out something along the way." She grinned.

Stefan stood straight. "We're really going to play this game, Gilbert?"

Elena smirked, stuffing the electronic device in her jean pocket. His heart stopped. He wondered how she even fit the phone in there; her jeans were so tight. "Let's go, Steffy." She said, smiling as she opened the door to his room. She headed out into the hallway and down the stairs, leaving Stefan alone.

He shook his head, smiling. Sometimes he wondered why he dealt with this girl. But deep down, he knew why.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Hey guys! I got feedback from you guys to continue so I decided to. Thank you to anyone who reviewed and encouraged me to continue. It meant a lot. Here's a short chapter, but don't worry the next one will be much longer. I just needed to introduce the way Stefan felt about her before writing the next chapter. Please review guys! It gives me motivation, hehe.

Oh and on another note, after writing the first chapter, I heard a song that kind of goes with my story. I was listening to Pandora one day and it came on. You guys should definitely check it out. Despite who the artist is, it is a very good song and it goes well with the story which kind of surprised me when I hear it. It's called Fall by Justin Bieber. I heard it legit the day after I posted the first chapter and my jaw dropped open. Hahaha. Thank the Biebs for this update. It inspired me!

xoxo

* * *

Stefan walked up the stairs to Mystic Falls High as slow as he could. He didn't want to come back to this hell hole. This would be one of the days that Stefan envied his older brother Damon. He had graduated the year before.

He smiled finally seeing a familiar face. "Hey man," he greeted.

The dark haired boy walked up to him. "Stefan Salvatore," Tyler Lockwood grinned. "I was pretty convinced you were dead. What happened to you this summer?"

Stefan shrugged. "I was around. I did come to your bonfire, you know."

Tyler rolled his eyes. "And that was also at the beginning of summer."

The two boys walked into the school, passing crowds of familiar and new, young faces. Most of the crowds dispersed as the two boys walked. Realization finally hit Stefan. He was a senior in high school. This was his last academic year of school and it scared the shit out of him.

Tyler smirked. "Lots of new faces, I see."

Stefan chuckled. "Aren't you and Caroline still a thing?"

"Of course," He said looking over to his friend. "But I never said for me."

"Then, who for?"

At that moment, two girls walked up to the boys. Stefan's heart started racing as the brunette walked up to him. She was wearing denim capris and a neon green racer back tank top with a white sweater. The light colors brought out her olive toned skin. Her hair was down, slightly wavy. As she walked up, she didn't say anything but just smiled.

The blond that was walking with Elena went straight for Tyler's arms. She pecked him on the lips and then grinned. "I missed you," Caroline Forbes whispered. Stefan looked to Elena. They both exchanged a look of discomfort as Tyler and Caroline continued to be cutesy.

Caroline finally looked to Stefan. "Oh, Stefan, hi!" she smiled. "I haven't seen you in a while. How are you?"

"I'm fine" he managed to say before the school bell went off signaling everyone to get to class. Caroline and Tyler locked hands as they began to walk the opposite direction as Stefan and Elena.

"For you, man!" Tyler shouted to Stefan before turning completely away from them. Elena gave Stefan a confused look. "What was that all about?"

Stefan smiled and then shrugged. "Not so sure," He pointed to the paper in her hands. "What's your first class?"

Elena groaned. "Algebra 2 and Trig"

Stefan smiled. Elena was terrible at math. He remembered when they were in elementary school, Stefan would tutor her and she'd pay him with bags of marshmallows. He internally laughed at the memory.

"Well I'll see you later then" he said, slowly making his way to the corner of the hall.

Elena stopped and smiled. "Come over after school!" she shouted before disappearing into a classroom. Stefan smiled to himself, looking at the now empty space of where Elena had stood. He sighed, turning the corner and headed to his class.

* * *

Stefan watched the clouds as he walked home from school. He couldn't help but think of summer memories from years past. Elena was in most of them and he couldn't help but smile at the thought of her. Whenever he thought of her, he felt so happy. He almost couldn't help himself. They had been best friends since childhood and he knew it was wrong to feel this way about someone who was supposed to be a friend, but he couldn't help himself. Whenever she was sad, it broke his heart. Whenever she flirted with other guys, he became jealous. Whenever she went out with other guys, he was miserable. There had to be some kind of connection, right?

Stefan stuffed his hands in his jean pockets and looked in front of him. A few cars passed by him, but other than that, it was pretty quiet. He didn't live far from the school – walking distance – so it saved him a lot of gas money. Less to worry about.

Stefan could see, from a far distance, Elena's car in her driveway. He grinned. There he goes again. He honestly couldn't help himself. He was like a little boy on Christmas morning. He knew how he felt. He could never tell her though. He could never put their friendship in that kind of risk to only be shot down. He knew nothing more would ever come from their friendship; he had come to terms with that a while ago. He couldn't help but wish. He could help his feelings.

Elena didn't necessarily have a good record with guys either. She had usually gone for the players who ended up breaking her heart. Stefan had always been there to comfort her, but he could never mend it in the way he wanted to. If she was his, he'd never break her heart. He knew that for a fact.

He slowed his pace has he came closer to the house. It was an older, white Victorian-looking house with a huge porch. On the right side of the porch held a swinging chair where he and Elena had shared many conversations on. On the other side was a small wooden bench where he had been forced to sit on whenever he'd wait for Elena when they were in middle school. Elena's father had never let him in the house, even after knowing him for so many years. After 7th grade when Elena's dad left, Elena's mother allowed him to come in. Now he was treated like family.

Elena's father had left for many reasons that she didn't like to talk about. Stefan remembered the day she came bursting through his door one spring day, bawling her eyes out. He didn't know what to do then or why she had even been crying. He had tried calming her down to the best of his ability but eventually he just let her cry it out. He finally realized that was best for her to do instead of trying to shut her up.

_Elena sniffled, finally stopping the water works coming down from her big, brown eyes. Stefan hesitated to ask what was wrong. He sat next to her looking down at the floor. She sniffled again._

"_He's gone," she whispered._

_Stefan still didn't say anything._

"_My dad is gone," she said louder. "My parents are getting a divorce, Stefan." She looked to him as he looked up at her. "What am I going to do?"_

_He reached out to hug her and she began to cry again. "Everything will be okay eventually." He said lowly. "You'll always have me. I won't ever leave you."_

He walked up the stone path and up the porch stairs. He didn't bother knocking and just walked in. He heard the TV on in the living room. He walked by and smiled. "Hey Jer," he said waving to Elena's younger brother. Jeremy smiled at him and continued watching the movie on the television screen. Stefan walked to the kitchen, placing his book bag down on the ground under the kitchen table. He grabbed a water bottle out of the refrigerator and made his way to the foyer. He walked up the stairs quietly, cracking open the water bottle as he did. He took a sip of it and turned to the right and down the hallway to Elena's room. He heard laughing. He slowed his pace. Was she not alone?

He continued down the hall, finally getting to Elena's room. He listened quietly but heard nothing besides something moving around. He turned the knob and opened the door, automatically wishing he hadn't. His heart stopped.

Elena was laying on her bed, under a boy who was hovering over her. He had blonde hair and seemed very muscular due to the way his arms were flexing. Their lips were locked in a deep kiss. Once sensing someone was there, Elena broke away from the kiss. She gasped as she saw Stefan standing in her doorway. Stefan's heart sank into his stomach.

"Oh, Stefan!" She exclaimed surprised. It was almost if she had forgotten she had invited him over earlier. The boy on top of her sat up, looking at the intruder who had stopped their make out session. He gave Stefan an annoyed look. Stefan looked down at the ground quickly. He felt as though in the matter of five seconds, he became a small scared child instead of himself.

Elena got up quickly from the bed, but Stefan's voice stopped her. "It's fine. I'll see you later." He said before shutting the door in her face. He turned from the door and started walking down the hallway. He felt his heart beat slower and anger rumble in his throat. He felt his hands turn to fists as his stomach began to ache. If this is how it felt like being in love, maybe he didn't want it after all.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Before you guys ask me a bunch of questions, Matt is from a different school. Hehe, for now. But I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It's sort of a filler chapter, so let me know what you think. Review!

xoxo

* * *

Stefan slowly shifted onto his side and opened his eyes. He didn't remember falling asleep on the couch. The TV in front of him was on, the volume low. He must of have been watching a movie before falling asleep. He sat up cautiously; he heard something - or someone - in the kitchen behind him.

"Oh look, you're up." He heard from behind him. He turned, recognizing the voice well; his brother, Damon. Stefan didn't say anything, but yawn. He watched as Damon sat down on the recliner next to Stefan and took a bite out of his sandwich. He picked up the remote on the table next to him and raised the volume on the TV. "It's about time. I was missing my show trying not to wake you up."

"Usually you don't care," Stefan said, running his hands through his hair.

Damon nodded. "I don't care, period. But I saw – well, heard – that you were upset when you came in earlier so I decided to give you a freebee." He looked at his brother. "Don't count on any more of them."

Stefan smiled slightly and turned to the television. He didn't recognize the show. Two girls were arguing and pushing each other around. He shrugged. He didn't really know what Damon was into.

"So what was wrong earlier?" Damon inquired without taking his eyes off the television screen. Stefan looked at his brother, a mixture of shock and confusion in his face. Damon finally looked to him, taking in his facial expression and laughed. "Yeah, you're right. I don't care."

Stefan shook his head, finally getting up from the couch. He started walking to the kitchen for something to drink when Damon stopped him. "Oh by the way, Elena came by. She wanted to talk but you were sleeping so," Stefan looked back to his brother, his eye brows furrowing together. "She said she'd try talking to you later."

Stefan didn't say anything and walked to the fridge. He grabbed a can of soda out of the fridge and walked up the stairs to his room. He cracked open the can and took a fizzy gulp of it. He felt the liquid make its way down his throat. He opened his bedroom door and stopped in his tracks.

"It's about time, sleepy head!"

"What the hell are you doing here?" He asked. He started getting more upset than he was before.

Elena was sitting on his bed in a pair of black shorts and an oversized sweatshirt that he had let her borrow years before. She was staring at the ground now. She could sense he was upset.

"I thought I'd surprise you now since you were sleeping before…" she said lowly. He rolled his eyes and closed the door to his room. He didn't say anything as he walked to his dresser, placing his soda can down and walking to his bathroom.

"It's not cool to give me the cold shoulder, you know. I didn't do anything to you. Sure, it was a little inappropriate you walking in on us but I didn't mean for it to happen." He heard her say from his room. He looked at himself in the mirror. His eyes were full of hurt and anger. He had bags under his eyes from not getting enough sleep. He hadn't gotten much since school started. He turned on the sink below him and splashed water on his face, refreshing himself. He switched it off, patting his face dry with a towel and walked back into his room.

"I'm perfectly fine, Elena." He said, leaning against the door frame.

She scoffed, standing up from his bed. "That's complete bullshit. You want to know why? Because I know you; I've known you for almost eighteen years now, Stefan, and I know when you're upset. So don't try bullshitting me!" The last word was almost a yell. Now she was getting upset. "I want to know why you're upset over something that had nothing to do with you."

Stefan nodded his head slowly, his jaw set. "Elena, you should leave. I can't do this right now."

"Why not?" Her voice rose. "I don't get it. Please explain it to me!"

He sighed. "I have a lot of homework. You just need to leave."

Elena scoffed again. "Fuck it, whatever." She said. She walked to the open window on the other side of his bed. She lifts open the window all the way and put one of her legs through. She looked back to Stefan. "When you feel like actually talking, you know where I am." She grabbed the tree branch outside his window, swung her other leg out, and then she was gone.

Stefan sighed. What was he going to do?

* * *

Elena fell unto her bed, angry than she had ever been. She didn't know why Stefan was acting the way he was and it was bugging the hell out of her. She wanted to help him. She felt responsible for helping him in some way.

There was a knock at her door. She sat up quickly; half hoping it was Stefan at her door. But she knew if it was, he wouldn't have knocked. He would have just walked in. "Who is it?" she called out, flopping back down on her bed.

The door opened exposing two girls. One was blonde with wavy hair and a sweet smile. The other was a dark skinned brunette with long straight hair and brown eyes. Elena smiled at the sight of them. They had been best friends since middle school. The blonde, Caroline, was the girly one of them all. Always wearing either a skirt or dresses, she had the best fashion sense of the three. The brunette, Bonnie, had been her closest friend besides Stefan. Their parents had been best friends as teenagers hence the closeness of the girls now. Bonnie also had a thing for her younger brother which kind of grossed Elena out.

"Hey!" Caroline exclaimed, happily. She rushed into the room and unto Elena's bed. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, Caroline. I did see you earlier." Elena said, sitting up on her bed. Bonnie closed the door behind her and mimicked Caroline's steps.

"Hey, I didn't see you today" Bonnie said, looking at Elena.

Elena shrugged. "Yeah, I guess we don't have any classes today."

Bonnie pouted. "Kind of sucks. It being our last year and all."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Stop being so depressing. We need to be happy for that exact reason!"

Elena sighed, leaning against her headboard. Caroline furrowed her eyebrows together. "I sense something is wrong," she said. "Spit it out."

Elena shrugged. "It's nothing; it's just Stefan." She sighed again. "He's acting all weird with me."

Caroline gaped at her friend and then looked at Bonnie. "Is she being serious?"

Bonnie laughed and looked at Elena. "Are you really that blind, Elena?"

"What are you guys talking about?" Elena asked, sitting up straight. "Is there something I don't know?"

Caroline sighed. "Ok, Elena. Is there any events that occurred today that would set Stefan off?"

Nothing came to mind besides what happened earlier when she was making out with Matt. He couldn't have been upset at that. Maybe he was upset at her for blowing him off after school.

Elena shrugged. "Nothing really, I mean, we were fine this morning. We were supposed to hang out after school but then Matt came over and –"

"Wait," Bonnie interrupted.

"Matt Donovan?" Caroline asked, stunned.

Elena smiled slightly and nodded. "Are you kidding, Elena?" Caroline exclaimed. "You got yourself a Belleview boy?" She nodded with approval. "Belleview High School has the hottest guys."

"You may continue now." Bonnie said, also nodding in approval.

"Well Matt came over and we came up here. Then we sort of started making out and then Stefan walked in…"

"Oh my god!" Caroline squealed. "You guys made out?"

Elena and Bonnie both shot Caroline the same look. Bonnie sighed and turned back to Elena. "What did Stefan do? Was it awkward?"

"I mean, it was awkward that he walked in on us but…"

"Elena, don't you realize it by now?" Caroline intervened.

"Realize what?" Elena asked, confused.

Bonnie and Caroline looked at each other and then both at Elena. "Oh, Elena," Bonnie started, shaking her head. "You're so blind."

Elena huffed, annoyed. "Can someone tell me what's going on?"

"Stefan is –" Bonnie interrupted Caroline quickly. "You should talk to Stefan. But be calm about it. Maybe you'll figure it out."

Elena sighed. "I tried talking to him but it just resulted in us both angry and I left."

"Give him some time," Caroline said. "Maybe it'll help."

Elena shrugged but nodded. "Fine"

"Now that that is over with!" Caroline said grinning. "I have to tell you guys about what Tyler did the other day. It was so cute!"

Elena nodded, pretending to listen to Caroline. But she zoned her out. She couldn't help that think that Stefan was hiding something from her. They were best friends; they never kept anything a secret from each other. She couldn't shake it out of her mind. Maybe she should text him. Maybe he'd be willing to talk to her now. It had been a few hours since she had sneaked into his house to talk to him. She sighed silently to herself. She hated that he was upset at her.

She grabbed her phone off of her bed side dresser and opened a blank text message.

She stopped herself. She told him to talk to her when he was ready. She couldn't rush him and push him away. She knew how he gets when he's pushed; he completely shuts down. Right now, she was powerless. She couldn't do anything but wait at this point.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Please don't crucify me for how short this chapter is. It's a filler for the next one. And I promise the next one will be long and fulfilling to your needs! Review.

xoxo

* * *

It had been a few days since he had last had a full conversation with Elena. He had seen her at school, exchanged awkward hellos, but nothing more came out of it. He'd hate to admit it but he missed her, a lot. But he didn't know how to talk to her after that. He wasn't sure if he should just flat out tell her how he felt or just ignore how he felt like he had for the past few years. He'd be screwed and risk his friendship if she didn't feel the same way, but he knew if he continued to go on and ignore his feelings, it would bite him in the ass in the future.

Stefan rounded the corner of the hall and walked down the stairs of his house. No one was home. Damon was at work down at the new store at the mall that just opened. His father was at a dinner for work. Stefan didn't mind being by himself, but usually when days like this came along, Elena was over. He sighed.

He walked to the living room, flopping down on the couch and switching on the television. He flipped through the channels before he settled on a college basketball game. He tried focusing on the orange ball dribbling down the court but he couldn't.

His phone buzzed in his pocket. He lifted it out of his pocket to see his screen lit up displaying a new text message. His heart started racing when he saw who it was from. Elena.

**We should talk. Meet me at the park.**

He sat up slowly, staring at the lit up screen. What would he even say to her? He wasn't prepared for this at all. Despite his unpreparedness, he got up from the couch, switched off the television and walked out of his house.

The cool wind blew around him, giving him the chills. He walked down the street as quickly as he could, without looking too eager by nosey neighbors. The park wasn't far from their house. They used to go there as little kids. He remembered how they would swing on the swing sets and try to see which one of them could go the highest. He smiled at the memory.

Finally he made it to the end of the street and slowed his pace when he saw the tall maple tree with a swing set under it. There, he saw her. She was sitting on one of the swings, looking out into the sky. He made his way to her and she looked up when he got close. Her face lightened up.

Stefan didn't say anything when he got closer but he didn't need to because she did. She got up from the swing, walking up to him and hugging him. "Hey, I've missed you" she whispered to him. Her skinny arms wrapped around his waist as his heart beat faster. He found himself wrapping his arms around her. He wondered if she could feel his heart beating faster. He got nervous suddenly which made his heart beat even faster than before. He let go of her quickly. She stepped away from him, awkwardly and didn't make eye contact with him. She sat back on the swing waiting for him to mimic her actions.

He finally sat down out of embarrassment and looked out into the trees across the way. He mentally scolded himself for everything. They sat in silence for a while before either of them spoke.

"So I have been thinking for the past few days," Elena started. "And I finally realized how stupid this thing between us is so I decided it was time to talk."

Stefan didn't say anything. He looked at her, patiently.

"So we should talk about the other day and why you got so upset"

"I didn't get upset." Stefan said quickly. He knew right now at this moment wasn't the right time to tell her. "I was just… surprised." He nodded as if he wanted to believe his own answer. "I was shocked. I didn't know you were seeing anyone." At least he wasn't lying; he really didn't know she was.

She smiled slightly. "Oh yeah, I was meaning to tell you about him. His name is Matt Donovan. He goes to Belleview High and we've been talking for a while now. It's not official or anything." She shrugged. "I was going to tell you."

He nodded slowly, but inside it felt as if he had been stabbed a thousand times in the heart. He smiled at her. "I'm happy for you." He said finally.

She grinned at him. "I'm glad. I've been dying for you to meet him!"

Stefan chuckled uncomfortably. "I don't think –"

"Oh, nonsense! You are my best friend. You are going to meet him." Elena said sternly.

Stefan laughed lightly. "Alright, fine. But under one condition," She waited patiently. "I'm still taking you to prom, like we agreed on three years ago."

Elena laughed and then grinned. "You already know you are."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **I know I haven't updated in awhile and I'm sorry! I've been so busy with school and finals that I hadn't had the time to sit down and write. I did my best and if it weren't for the fact I hadn't updated in so long, this would have been longer. But here's this, and I promise to update soon with more! Leave me love,

xoxo

* * *

It had been a few weeks since he and Elena had their talk about what had happened. Things were back to normal. Well sort of. Elena had been spending a lot of time with Matt lately. He and Stefan had met a week ago and Stefan concluded that he was an okay guy for Elena. A few days after, he and Elena had made it official. It was a stab at Stefan's heart, but he knew Elena was happy right now and that's all that mattered.

Stefan sat down at one of the picnic tables in the courtyard of the school and sighed. He saw Tyler Lockwood heading his way. He knew what was coming.

"So what's this I hear about Elena with Donovan?" Tyler sat down across from Stefan, shaking his head. "Come on, man. What are you doing?"

Stefan shrugged. "She's happy and that's all that matters."

"Yet you're on the sidelines watching her fall in love with a guy that's not you." Tyler shook his head. "It doesn't make any sense to me."

"She doesn't know, Tyler."

"Well how about tell her and see what goes from there?" Tyler dug through his back pack.

Stefan shook his head, people watching. More like, looking out for Elena. "It's too risky. What if our friendship unravels because of all of this?"

"What if it doesn't?" Tyler scoffed. "Stop being so negative and get the girl."

Stefan glanced at his friend and then back out into the courtyard. He couldn't ruin this year, his last year of high school, by ruining his friendship with Elena. He would never forgive himself. He would be completely miserable.

"Even if I did tell her, it's too late. She's with Matt."

Tyler rolled his brown eyes. "Do you think if Caroline was with another guy if that would stop me from telling her?"

"But what if she was happy with that other guy?" Stefan said quickly.

"But what if she would be happier with you?" Tyler said, raising a single eye brow. He grinned. "You know I'm right."

* * *

Elena rounded the corner to the entrance of her street and saw Matt's truck in her driveway. She sighed lightly and looked up to the sky. It had been a few weeks since they had made it official and since then, she was… well, she was bored. They had spent a lot of time together since then, so much time that she hadn't spent time with any of her other friends. She looked beyond Matt's truck to Stefan's house. She looked at his open window, but there was no sign of life. She sighed again. She missed Stefan. A lot.

She finished walking the space between her and her driveway. She glanced to Stefan's house once more. She could see him through his window finally. His hair was wet and he was shirtless. He didn't turn but she could see his muscular back from where she stood. She felt something in her stomach. Something she had never felt before. Stunned and surprised, she rushed into her house.

"Hey, took you long enough to get here." Matt got off the couch and walked over to her. He gave her a peck on the lips and smiled. "Did you stay after school?"

Elena half smiled. "Yeah. I had some homework I needed to get done." Matt nodded slowly, resting his hand on her arm. He looked back to Jeremy who was sitting on the couch in the living room and back at Elena. "Might telling me next time so I'm not here waiting around for you." He whispered, annoyed.

Elena was a little taken back. He had never been like this with her. "Okay, yeah, I'm sorry."

Matt then smiled and took her book bag from her and setting it on the floor. "Ready to go?"

Elena nodded, still a bit shocked at the firmness of his voice before. "Um, yeah." She turned to Jeremy, who was now watching them. "I'm going out. Mom said she was coming home late. You'll be okay?" Jeremy nodded his head, smiling. "Bonnie is coming over in a little bit, so I'm good. See you guys later."

Elena smiled at her brother, opening the front door. Matt grabbed her wrist, urging her out faster. His grip on her wrist hurt. She winced in pain, but didn't say anything.

Once outside, she heard a rumble sound she knew too well. She looked over to her right and saw Stefan in his car. She smiled and looked back to Matt. "I'll just be a second, alright?"

She rushed over to Stefan's car before Matt could say anything. She grinned as she saw a smile grow unto Stefan's face. "Hey stranger," she said once she reached Stefan's car. She popped her head through the passenger window. "How have you been?"

He shrugged. "Same old. What about yourself? Too busy with Mr. Right, huh?"

She laughed slightly, ignoring his comment. Stefan looked the same to her. His brown hair was styled the same way as it had been the past three years. He wore his signature v-neck shirts, like any other day, yet something was different. She couldn't place her finger on it. She grinned.

"We'll hang out soon. I promise." She heard a car honk from behind her. Stefan smiled and nodded. "Sounds good." He said. "I got to go though; I finally got a job down at The Grill." He glanced at his dashboard. "And I'm already five minutes late," he smiled. "See you around."

Elena smiled and backed away from the car. She waved as he backed out of the drive way. She turned around and walked to the passenger side of Matt's truck. He was already in the car. He probably had gotten tired of standing in the driveway waiting for her. She smiled getting into the truck and closed the door. "Sorry to keep you waiting babe –"

She felt a sudden sting on her cheek. She winced. She looked up at Matt. His hand was slightly raised and he looked angry. Her hand touched her sore face lightly. She winced.

"Don't ever leave me waiting again." He said sternly. "Especially for him. In fact, I don't want you talking to him."

"What?" she said, dumbfounded. She couldn't believe at what just happened. Matt had hit her.

"I don't want you talking to Salvatore, got it?" he said, angrily.

She looked up at him, scared. All she could see were anger in his eyes. His nostrils were flaring and his neck was turning red. She nodded quickly to get him to calm down.

She heard him breathe out and he loosened up. He smiled then and turned on the truck, oblivious to what had just occurred. "So where do you want to eat?"

Elena sulked back in her seat, her hand still on her stinging cheek. Did that really just happen? Did Matt really just hit her? And over Stefan? She felt her eyes start to sting, but she held in the tears. "Doesn't matter."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **Since I left you guys hanging like that in the last chapter, I decided to update again. But I warn you guys now, I will not be updating for awhile until I get some serious amount of reviews. And I mean that! So review, review, review. Enjoy!

xoxo

* * *

"Elena, are you alright?" Bonnie asked, cautiously. "You've been acting a little weird lately." The three girls were sitting in the Mystic Grill, the local bar and grill in town. It became their hang out spot over the summer.

Elena looked up from the table to her friend. She lifted the sleeve of her sweatshirt higher with her fingertips, nervously. "I'm fine," she said, forcing a smile. "Why do you ask?"

Caroline took a sip of her iced tea and sighed. "You seem completely miserable, Elena. I mean, for God's sake, you've been wearing sweatshirts and jeans for a good two weeks now. Something is obviously wrong if you can't properly dress yourself in the morning."

Bonnie nodded and reached out for Elena's hand on the table. Elena flinched and pulled away. Bonnie gasped, surprised. "We're worried, Elena, that's all." She said, ignoring what had just happened.

"We know you better than almost anyone," Caroline said. "And we know something is wrong. Knowing you, you won't want to burden anyone else with the problem and try to fix it yourself, but sometimes you need your friends' help, Elena."

Elena closed her eyes. "Stop saying my name like I'm some sort of mental patient. I'm perfectly fine. I've just been stressed out lately, that's all. Now can we _please_ change the subject now?"

Bonnie and Caroline exchanged a worried glance but did as their friend requested.

"So I heard Stefan started working here a few weeks ago. I saw him the other day bussing tables." Caroline said, picking up her menu from the table.

"Didn't Damon used to work here too?" Bonnie asked.

Caroline nodded. "Yeah, but that was a while ago, right, Elena?"

The two girls stared at their friend. Elena's head was spinning. She had forgotten Stefan had started working here a few weeks back. He had told her. She remembered. It was the same day that it first happened. She flinched slightly remembering it all.

She looked up at her confused friends and then glanced passed them to the bar. Coming out the back door was the familiar figure she had grown up with. Her heart started racing. He looked the same but yet, he still looked so different. He was wearing all black; his shirt had the grill's logo in the right corner in orange. He was holding a gray empty tray with a yellow rag on his left shoulder. She could see his glistening forehead from her seat. Her adrenaline started pumping all of the sudden and she suddenly remembered.

"I have to go," she said in a rush. She got up quickly from the booth. She glanced back to Stefan, who clearly still hadn't seen her yet. "I'll talk to you guys later." She walked quickly to the exit of the restaurant.

"Wait, Elena, where are you going?" Caroline yelled after her. But before either of the girls could go after her, she was gone.

Bonnie sighed and Caroline fussed. "What the hell is her problem, like seriously? All we were trying to do was help and she just runs out like that?" She rolled her eyes. "So inconsiderate."

"Hey guys," The two girls looked up to a confused face. Stefan glanced back at the entrance and then back at Bonnie and Caroline. "Was that Elena running out the door?" he asked setting his tray on the table.

"Yes," Caroline sighed annoyed.

"She just ran out all of the sudden." Bonnie informed Stefan. "We have no idea why."

"This just adds to everything else." Caroline commented.

"Everything else?" Stefan looked confused. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Elena," Bonnie said. "She's been acting weird lately. Distant. And we tried talking to her about it but she just closed us off."

"She seemed fine to me a few weeks ago. I haven't really seen her lately. I've been busy with work and she's busy with Matt." Stefan said. There was a hint of annoyance in his voice when he spoke Matt's name.

"I feel like she hasn't been with anyone besides Matt lately," Caroline said, looking at her nail buds. "It's annoying. I don't even spend that much time with Tyler…"

"Well she said she was stressed out too," Bonnie pointed out. "Let's give her a few more weeks and see how she is. Thanksgiving break is coming up soon." She shrugged. "Maybe she just needs a break from school."

Stefan half smiled and looked passed the girls to the clock on the wall. "Alright, I got to get back to work. I'll see you guys around."

The two girls smiled and waved as the worried teenage boy walked away.

* * *

Elena walked up the stairs to her bedroom. No one was home. It was a Saturday afternoon. Her mother was at yoga class and Jeremy was out with a friend. She had the place to herself, yet she felt as though she rather be with someone instead of just herself.

She opened her bedroom door and flung her hipster bag onto her bed. She shrugged off her sweatshirt, carefully. Her tank top underneath exposed her olive toned arms. She walked to her bathroom door. It was a bathroom she shared with Jeremy with a double sink and a large shower. She walked in, switching on the light. The fluorescent light brightened her arms and face. She looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her face looked tired, worn out. She looked as though she hadn't slept in days, weeks even. Her eyes traveled down to her arms. There on her arms were fading bruises. She winced as she went to gently touch one. She didn't have many, maybe two on each arm. She turned slightly and lifted her tank top to expose back midway. There on both sides of her hips were huge purple bruises. She sighed in pain. It must have been from the other night when she and Matt first had sex. She pulled down her top in embarrassment.

She hadn't wanted to have sex, but Matt was being so sweet and kind that day. He had picked her up from school, taken her out to eat, bought her flowers. She thought maybe he was going to apologize for all the things he had done prior to that. But he didn't. He just wanted sex.

Elena sighed. She was getting really tired of this. She wasn't raised to be a man's personal punching bag. She knew she had to walk away, but everything is always easier said than done.

She walked out her bedroom, down the stairs to the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator, grabbing the ice tray and placing it on the counter. She dug around in the cabinet drawers before she found a plastic Ziploc bag. She closed the cabinet drawer, lifting herself slowly not to hurt herself. She jumped slightly when she saw Matt standing across from her.

Her heart started beating fast and she suddenly felt the urge to run, but fear stopped her. "What are you doing here?" she semi-whispered. She realized she was clenching the plastic bag in her hands. She loosened her grip.

He smiled at her and made is way to her. "I just wanted to see you," he said closing the space between them. He pressed his lips against hers. Elena stiffened. "I didn't realize it was a crime to come and see my girlfriend."

Elena placed the plastic bag on the counter and began taking out ice cubes out of the tray. "What's that for?" he asked, watching her. She looked up at him, dumbfounded.

"Are you joking?" she lifted her arms to him. "This," she said.

Matt's face changed. "What happened? Who did this to you?" His voice sounded angry, protective. It surprised Elena.

She dropped her arms to her sides, staring at him. His blue eyes showed anger and compassion. She didn't see what she had seen before when he had hit her. When he hit her, his eyes became blank pools of blue, no emotion at all.

"You did." She whispered.

"What?" His reaction changed. It softened. His voice sounded surprise, like he was almost in disbelief.

"You did this, Matt." She said finally looking up at his face. His eyes looked lost, confused. "You hit me."

Matt took a step back, away from her. "No," he said, furrowing his eye brows together in confusion. "I couldn't have. I would remember if I did. But I would never hit you," he said taking a step forward again. He reached out to place a hand on her arm, but she flinched away involuntarily. Matt looked taken back. He looked back up to her, the look of horror on his face.

"Elena, I did this to you?"

She nodded once, unable to look him in the eye now. She thought he had known the whole time. She wasn't sure what was going on right now. It was scaring her more.

"Oh my God," he said, backing away from her again. "Elena, I'm so, so sorry. I didn't mean to. I don't even remember what happened, or why I did it." He sighed. "I'm just – I don't know what to say."

Elena looked up to his face. He looked scared, worried. His eyes stared to water. He was going to cry. Elena closed the space between them. She touched his arm lightly, trying to sooth him. "It's fine, Matt. We're okay. I'm okay. It's just a few bruises." She forced a smile. "I swear I'm fine."

Matt looked at her face. His hand reached her cheek, she flinched lightly. She smiled to reassure him that she was fine. "Elena, I don't know what's going on." He whispered. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I don't want to hurt you, I know what for sure." She nodded slowly.

"Elena, I really care about you. Please, just don't leave."

"I won't."

For now.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N**: Okay, so this chapter isn't as long as I hoped it would be but it has been awhile since I had updated so I decided to post it anyways because I know you guys are probably getting really impatient. Please reviewwwwwwwwwww or updates will take longer. Haha, just kidding. I just love hearing your feedback and comments. They brighten my day:)

xoxo

* * *

Stefan opened his eyes slowly. The sun was creeping through his curtains making it impossible for him to continue sleeping. It was Sunday morning and today was the last day he would be able to sleep in for a while, yet he couldn't complete the task. He tried shutting his eyes again, forcing himself back asleep. He could hear the wind outside the walls of his house gently swaying the trees' leaves in his backyard. He could hear the dog down the street barking endlessly. He could hear the television downstairs in the living room. Probably Damon, no doubt.

He sighed, giving up on the task. Before opening his eyes, he heard a light tap on his window. He shot up immediately, automatically recognizing that tap and knowing exactly who it was.

There, as if it were a figment of his imagination, was Elena at his window. He blinked twice to make sure he really hadn't fallen asleep and was dreaming. But there she was still. She was smiling slightly. Stefan could tell she was hanging onto the tree tightly in order to stay in the sitting position she was in, for a long period of time.

He got up from his bed, forgetting his appearance and unlocked the latch to the window. Elena opened it slowly while Stefan backed away to his bed and sat down. She winced slightly as she reached her legs into the window. Stefan furrowed his eyebrows together, worried. That had never happened before. Elena was athletic enough from cheer to be able to drop her into a room from a window perfectly. She had done it a million and one times before not to be perfect at it. Stefan decided not to think too much into it.

Once inside the room, Elena closed the window behind her and faced Stefan. "Hey stranger"

It had been a few weeks since Stefan had last seen her, well barely seen her. He had seen her running out of the grill but that's the last he'd seen of her, besides a few times in school. He felt like it had been ages since he had actually had a full, intellectual conversation with her. But looking at her now, she looked like the Elena he remembered. Well sort of.

She seemed a bit thinner, like she had lost weight. Her face seemed to be clinging to her bones and dark circles were forming under her eyes. She had no makeup on, which added to the zombie-like effect that was emulating off of her. She was dressed in a baggy hoodie, probably one of Matt's, and some regular yellow shorts.

Elena obviously read the worried look on Stefan's face when her face changed. "Don't look at me like that, please."

"Elena, are you okay?"

She nodded quickly. "I'm fine, Stefan. Just a little stressed is all."

He nodded once, but he knew there had to be more to the story. She looked as though she was morning the loss of someone close to her and was taking it harder than anyone else. She looked depressed and sad.

She smiled suddenly, breaking Stefan's train of thought. "I've missed you! How are you?" She walked to the bed and sat next to him. He forced a smile towards her and shrugged.

"I've just been working a lot, I guess."

"I've noticed. You haven't really been around lately." She said, looking down at the ground.

"How's Matt?"

She quickly turned back to Stefan. "Why do you ask?" she said nervously.

"Well, he is your boyfriend, isn't he?" Stefan asked confused. "I'm just politely asking how he is…"

Elena relaxed slowly. "Yeah," she mumbled as though to calm herself down. "He's alright."

"Well that's good then," Stefan said, studying her. She wasn't looking at him, but out the window. She looked distracted and worried. Maybe as if she'd get in trouble being here.

"Bonnie and Caroline miss you." Stefan said, breaking the silence. Elena turned to him. She had no emotion in her face. Her eyes were brown as usual, but a sad brown. "I know. I was with them the other day. I've just been really busy lately." She shrugged slightly but then winced. "I'm trying to keep up with everyone, you know?"

Stefan's eyes narrowed slightly and watched her body language closely. This wasn't Elena. She wasn't acting like herself. The Elena he knew and loved made time for everyone in her life. She tried to be there for everyone, putting them in front of herself. Something was off. Stefan was trying to put the pieces together.

"What are you so stressed out with?"

Elena looked down at his dark comforter covering his bed. "Just a lot of school – I guess this is what I get for taking a shit load of AP classes. I'm finishing up my college applications too."

Stefan nodded slowly. The answer made sense, so she semi-wasn't bullshitting him. "Yeah, I feel your pain."

Elena looked at him quickly. "What?"

"I feel your pain… you know, with filling out college applications and stuff…" Stefan said slowly. Either Elena wasn't fully concentrated in the conversation or he triggered something.

"Oh," Elena faked a smile. "Right!"

They sat there in silence for a few minutes. Elena avoided his gaze at all costs. This was very un-Elena like. Something was seriously wrong.

"So isn't yours and Matt's one month next week?"

Elena was quite for a moment as if she was thinking to herself. She didn't meet Stefan's gaze but nodded slowly. "I guess so."

"Nothing special going on?"

She shook her head. "No, probably not."

Stefan stared at her carefully. He could see a slight glimmer of light rolling down her cheek. She sniffled lightly. Elena was crying.

"Hey," he attempted to sooth. He reached out to touch her shoulder, but she flinched before he could even touch her. He stared confused and shocked. "Elena?"

She finally looked over at him. She really looked at his face this time. He could see it all; the pain, the hurt, the worry, the fear.

"Elena, what the hell is going on? Talk to me please."

Elena closed her eyes tightly, tears rolling from the side of her eyes down her cheek. She shook her head slowly, as if she were fighting a battle with herself. She opened her mouth slightly and then closed it. She took a deep breathe in.

"Matt hits me."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Now here is a very long update. I don't remember the last time I wrote a chapter this long so I hope you guys enjoy it and it's satisfying to your needs! ^.^ Don't forget to review and let me know what you guys think!

xoxo

* * *

Matt slowly sat up from his bed playing back everything that had happened the other day in his mind. His hand made its way to his face, covering his eyes in horror as he remembered Elena's terrified face and how she winced every time he had tried to touch her. Had he really done this?

He told her he'd get help. He told her not to tell anyone.

He had his appointment with a physiatrist today to get himself evaluated. He had to get help. He had no idea what was going on internally.

_Why bother? There's nothing wrong with staying the way you are._

Matt shook his head quickly. The voices. They were back. He hated the voices.

He got up from his comfy bed and walked out of his bedroom to his bathroom across the hall.

Matt looked at himself through the bathroom mirror. The other person in the mirror, he didn't recognize as himself. Sure, the other person had blonde hair like he did, had blue eyes like he did, but there was something different he couldn't exactly put his finger on.

Matt shook his head, ignoring his thoughts. He turned on the showerhead and didn't hesitate in jumping in.

* * *

Stefan's eyes opened slowly to the vibration of the bed moving under him. There, next to him in his bed, was a sleeping Elena. Her face was towards him. She looked so peaceful and relaxed, unlike last night when she had come to him and told him about Matt. Even though he wanted to beat the shit out of Matt last night, he chose not to leave Elena's side. She needed him and he knew that.

He watched her as her face glistened in the sunlight coming from the window. He lifted the blanket over her, careful not to wake her. In a swift glance, he saw that her shirt had lifted slightly over her stomach in her sleep. There, he saw the bruises on her waist.

Stefan started breathing heavily and out of control. He started getting hot. Anger started washing over him. He lifted her sweatshirt sleeve as much as he could without waking her. There on her arm were fresher bruises. He dropped the blanket, his hands now shaking. Matt Donovan was going to die. Stefan was going to make sure of it.

Stefan was brought out of his thoughts when he saw Elena's eyes flutter open from the corner of his eye. She smiled up at him, but didn't move an inch. "Morning," she whispered.

He smiled at her. He just wanted to kiss her. Even though she was emotional mess, she was still perfect in his eyes. " Good morning," he said lowly.

She lifted her hand slowly to her face, and rubbed her eyes. Her hair, from his view, looked as though it was in knots. Stefan chuckled lowly watching her. Elena stopped and looked at him. "What?"

He shook his head slowly and pointed to the mirror across the room. "Go see for yourself."

Elena rolled her eyes and got up from the bed. She winced slightly, but ignored the pain. She didn't want to seem even weaker than she had shown him last night. She straightened up her clothing and walked to the mirror. She could feel Stefan's eyes on her.

She gasped as she looked at her appearance in the mirror. Her face was pale, making her almost look like a zombie. Her hair was down, but in major knots that scared her. She turned around quickly. "Weren't you terrified when you woke up to this?"

Stefan laughed lightly and shook his head. "No, not at all."

She smiled slightly and turned back to the mirror. She touched her cheek softly. She looked so incredibly different. She hadn't looked in a mirror in days. She was scared to see what she would see if she did.

She looked in the mirror to see Stefan, watching her. She couldn't exactly read his expression through his far away reflection. She turned around to face him. "Is it alright if I showered?" She smiled. " I look a mess as you can see."

Stefan sat up in his bed and nodded. "Sure, you know where it is."

Elena nodded and walked into the door closest to her. She closed it shut behind her, breathing in slowly.

Why did she come to him last night? She shouldn't have. Matt was getting help. He was going to get better. She couldn't lead Stefan on like this. Was she even leading him on?

She leaned her head back on the door and breathed out. Opposite her were a bathtub and a showerhead; something she desperately needed. She began to strip off her clothing, careful not to touch her healing bruises. Just in her black lace bra and underwear, she stared at her face in the mirror above the sink. She could see dark shadows under her eyes from lack of sleep. Last night though, she slept amazingly.

She picked up the brush sitting on the counter and brushed out the knots in her long dark hair. She winced at the pain coming from her scalp, but sighed in relief when she was finished. Her dark hair was now smoother than a horse's mane.

She walked to the showerhead and then realized she had no idea how to turn it on. She looked back to the door and then looked down at her appearance. On her sides were visible healing bruises and on her right upper arm was another fresh bruise. She couldn't have Stefan see her like this – let alone in her bra and underwear. She sighed indecisively. She finally decided that he was going to have to see her like this eventually – bruises and beaten. Plus, it would be too painful to put all her clothes back on just for him to turn on the shower.

She opened the door slightly and poked her head through. "Hey Stefan?"

She could see from the corner of her eye that he was near his dresser, ruffling through his clothes. He was already wearing a pair of blue jeans, but no shirt. She admired his back muscles and how they flexed slightly when he turned around to face her. She snapped out of it.

"I need your help turning on the shower." She laughed slightly.

"Oh, right." Stefan said, throwing the shirt he had in his hands on his bed. "I forgot it was kind of tricky. I've gotten used to it but…" he trailed off as he reached the bathroom door. She could see under his right arm was a tattoo she had never seen before. It was his last name going down to his waist. It looked amazing. He looked amazing. She blinked a few times. "That's new," she said, pointing to his tattoo.

He smiled as he opened the door wider for him to enter the small bathroom. "Yeah, I got it a few weeks ago. I must have forgotten to –" He stopped midsentence as he took in Elena's appearance. She was in nothing, but her black lace bra and lace underwear. Not only did that and her body obviously catch his eye, but he could also see the bruises on her olive skin. His expression changed from surprise to sympathy.

He walked closer to her and she tried to somewhat cover up her body with her arms. "Elena," he whispered, removing her arms from her stomach. He could finally see her bruised waist clearer than before. "Elena, I…" he trailed off uncertain of what he could say.

She looked up at him, trying to get his attention away from her bruises. She finally lifted her hand to his face and moved it to face hers. His green eyes stared into her brown ones and for a moment, Elena forgot about everything. She forgot about the pain coming from her side, she forgot about Matt, and she forgot about how disgusting she looked.

In a swift movement, her lips were on his. She felt a rush of adrenaline and couldn't feel any physical pain. His hand made its way to her bare back and his other around her neck. The kiss quickly turned from innocent to eager and passionate in matter of a few seconds.

Stefan's mouth was soft against hers. She wanted more. Her hands started to roam in places she would never thought of before this moment. Stefan licked her bottom lip, seeking entrance into her mouth. She moaned slightly as he picked her up from her thighs and sat her down on the low sink counter. Their lips didn't lose contact until Stefan's made their way to her jaw line and then her neck. Elena pulled him closer to her as she moaned louder. His skin was so soft against hers. She wrapped her bare legs around his tan waist. She wanted all of him. His hands reached her waist and even though he was gentle with her bruises, she couldn't feel the pain. She couldn't feel it at all. He lifted her again by her waist and headed to his bedroom. He dropped her on the bed, which gave Elena a minute to breathe and giggle as Stefan made his way back to her lips. Elena reached down to his belt buckle and undid it quickly. She attempted to take of his jeans but failed miserably. She felt Stefan smile against her lips and broke apart for only a second for him to get rid of the denim clothing between them. She grinned and wrapped her legs around his bare waist. His lips had made contact with hers again…

"Elena?" The voice snapped her out of her daydream. She looked up to see Stefan staring worriedly at her. "You okay?"

Elena looked around her. She was still in the bathroom, the showerhead was now on and the water was filling the tub. She looked down at Stefan and was disappointed to see his jeans were still on. She shook her head quickly and smiled up at him. "Yeah, I'm fine." She pointed to the shower. "Thanks."

Stefan smiled and left the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Elena sighed and sat down on the closed toilet. "What was that…?"

* * *

Matt opened the glass door in front of him. He walked into the waiting room and to the front desk. There was no one seated in the waiting room. A few magazines were scattered on the couches and the coffee table in the middle.

"Hi, how can I help you?" The secretary asked, smiling.

He nodded. "Matt Donovan to see Dr. Bellman."

The red headed secretary typed a few things into the computer in front of her and then nodded, looking back up at Matt. "I'll let her know you're here. You may take a seat."

"Thanks," Matt said, before turning around to sit in one of the chairs in the waiting area. He picked up a car magazine to read in the mean time. Ever since he was little, he had loved fixing up cars. He had done it all the time with his dad.

"Matt?"

Matt's head looked up to where the voice came from. There was an older lady, maybe in her forties, smiling at him. "Hello, I am Dr. Bellman."

Matt stood up, placing the magazine on his chair. He stuck his hand out to shake hers. "Hey" She smiled and gestured him to follow her back passed a set of automatic doors and through a narrow hallway. They were silent as they walked passed various offices with closed doors. She finally came to a stop at a half way open door. She pushed the door open to let Matt in.

Matt sat down on the lounger couch, assuming she was going to sit in the chair across from him. She closed the door behind her and sat down exactly where Matt thought she was going to. She smiled at him as she reached for her clipboard on her desk. She wrote something down and then looked at him.

"So what's going on, Matt?"

He sighed, not knowing where to start.

_Don't say anything. Nothing is wrong with you._

He stared past her at the white wall behind her. He couldn't look at her.

"Something's wrong with me." She urged him to continue. "I…I haven't been myself lately. I'm not sure what's been going on."

"Could you expand on that?"

"I've been doing things I don't remember doing. Bad things."

She wrote something down on her notepad and nodded, gesturing him to continue. Matt took a deep breath in.

"I've been hitting my girlfriend and I didn't even know I was…"

Dr. Bellman looked up at him from her clipboard and folded her hands. "Is there mental illnesses in your family?"

"Not that I know of. My mom is sort of… absent and my dad died when I was younger."

"How about out of control anger?"

He shook his head. "But there is something," he sighed. "This is going to sound really weird, but I've been sort of hearing voices in my head."

"Voices?"

He nodded. "They tell me to do the opposite of what I know is right. For example, when I first came in here, it told me to lie to you and say everything was fine. I just don't get what's going on."

Dr. Bellman wrote something down on her notepad and sighed. "You say you've been hitting your girlfriend. Has she said anything about acting different before you've struck her?"

Matt winced slightly at the question. "She said I wasn't acting like myself. I was angrier, like I had been provoked in some way." He shook his head slowly. "But I never remember anything. Like a bad dream or something."

She nodded slowly, placing her clipboard on her desk next to her.

"I don't mean to hurt her, you got to believe me. There is something wrong with me."

"It sounds like to me you have dissociative identity disorder. But I want to get a second opinion before making a proper diagnosis." She got up and went to her desk and sat down. She muffled through her desk drawers before coming across something. She handed it to Matt. It was a business card to another doctor.

"Dissociative identity disorder is mental disorder which was previous known as multiple personality disorder. This disorder is characterized by the presence of more than one identity or personality with individual. This 'other' identity often has the same characteristics as a regular human being. They have their own reaction to things, emotions, and body functioning. Symptoms include, memory impairment and blackouts, which you seem to be having. There's no specific diagnostic test to see if you do have this mental disorder, but there is an interview conducted by a mental health specialist."

Matt looked down at the card he was given. He held on to it tightly. He was mental?

"It's basically an evaluation. There are a few treatments for this. There's psychotherapy, hypnosis –"

"Wait, psychotherapy? You think I'm crazy?" Matt asked, visibly offended.

Dr. Bellman looked a little taken back by the accusations. "Oh no, that's not what I'm saying at all. But if it turns out you do have this disorder, you will need treatment and therapy to control it."

"You know what," Matt stood up, stuffing the card in his jean pocket. "You can just forget about all this. Nothing is wrong with me. You just want to make money out of me."

Matt made his way to the door, opened it and left without another word spoken.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **I'm hoping this chapter satisfies your needs for now. And I decided to add a little bit of Damon fun ^.^ Enjoy and review!

xoxo

* * *

Elena tapped her fingers lightly on her desk. There were just a few minutes before school finally ended, but that wasn't what had her on edge. She hadn't seen Matt all day and she didn't want to. She had been avoiding him, his calls, his texts, but she had a bad feeling this was going to backfire on her. At the moment though, she didn't care. She had been spending a lot more time with Stefan and it made her happy. It cheered her up. She had been healing.

She had convinced Stefan – for the time being – not to kill Matt until she heard what he had to say first. But since she was avoiding Matt like the plague, she didn't think this was going to happen any time soon. She just wanted to forget about everything in the past, and move on.

She stared at the clock and watched as the red hand ticked closer and closer to the twelve. She waited impatiently. She had plans with Stefan after school – nothing big, just watching a movie at this house – but she still rather not do anything else. She didn't want to be anywhere else but with him. She had no idea what was going on, but she didn't mind it.

The school bell finally rang, signaling school was officially over. "Make sure to read chapter 12 for tomorrow. Have a good day," the teacher announced before sitting down at his desk.

Elena gathered her things quickly, stuffing them in her book bag and sped out of the classroom. She smiled as she saw Stefan walking towards her, his car keys in hand. His face seemed to brighten when his eyes finally laid on her. He was dressed in a dark blue V-neck and a pair of regular blue jeans but for some reason Elena's heart started racing.

"Hey," Stefan greeted when he finally came into hearing distance. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, casually. Elena smiled at the touch. "Ready to go?" he asked.

She nodded and led the way out of the school into the parking lot. She searched frantically for any sign of Matt, but saw nothing. The parking spot where he usually parked was empty. She sighed in relief and looked up at Stefan. He was looking at her.

"What?" Elena asked, a little embarrassed.

Stefan grinned but shook his head. "Nothing,"

Elena rolled her eyes but didn't say anything else. They finally made their way to Stefan's car and in a swift movement, he had opened the door for her. Her eyebrows rose in question but she smiled. "Why, thank you Mr. Salvatore." She said in a fake British accent. He smiled and shut the door once she was in.

This was a side of Stefan Elena had never seen before. Of course Stefan had always been caring and polite, but something was different this time. There was something else behind his actions. She kind of liked it, whatever it was.

Stefan then got into the car and revved the engine to life. Elena fastened her seat belt and placed her hands on her thighs patiently. Stefan backed up the car slowly and whizzed out of the school parking lot before anyone else could leave first.

Elena watched as Stefan's arm muscles tensed slightly as he turned the wheel as he drove. It as silent and she didn't mind. Silence was comforting. Stefan and Elena's street was far from the school, so it was a short drive.

Stefan turned slightly into his driveway and parked the car. He looked over at Elena, who was looking out the window next to her. He smiled. She seemed a lot happier than she was a few days ago that was for sure. He loved seeing her happy.

Both teens got out of the car and walked simultaneously to Stefan's front door. Before Stefan could put his house key into the keyhole, the door swung open. Stefan sighed, already tired.

"Brother," he nodded to Stefan. "Elena," he stared before looking back to his brother.

"Damon," Elena breathed out slowly.

"Come in, please." Damon smirked.

Elena rolled her eyes before stepping into the house. Stefan lingered back a little to talk to Damon. "What are you doing home?"

"Excuse me? This is my house too…"

"Aren't you supposed to be working or something?"

Damon shook his head. "Nope. Decided to spend my day off with my little bro." He glanced to Elena, who was sitting on the living room couch. "But it looks like you have some plans of your own."

Stefan closed the front door. "We're just friends," he said, walking away.

"Of course you are." Damon said, smirking.

Stefan really didn't want to deal with his older brother, but it looked like Damon wasn't going anywhere. Especially since he just sat down across from Elena in the living room. Stefan silently cursed his brother's work schedule. Stefan placed his book bag and car keys on the kitchen counter and walked into the living room, feeling the need to protect Elena from any stupid thing that came out of Damon's mouth.

The television was already on and Elena stared at it, clearly trying her best to ignore Damon's presence in the room. Stefan smiled and sat down next to her on the couch.

"So what are you two love birds plans for tonight?" Damon asked.

Elena rolled her eyes and crossed her arms across her chest. Stefan sighed.

"I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?" Damon smiled. "Or was it a little awkward?"

Elena finally looked at him, annoyed. "Is there a reason why you're here, Damon?"

Damon acted like the question surprised him. "What ever do you mean, Miss Elena? I do live here if you do not recall."

"I mean here, in this room, with us."

"Did you two want some alone time?"

"Damon, leave." Stefan said, now annoyed.

"And allow the opportunity of unprotected sex on my favorite couch? Mm, I don't think so." Damon laid back into his recliner and smiled.

"We aren't together!" Elena said.

Now it was awkward.

"Well that's unfortunate to hear and now I'm a bit confused. Could you clarify to me why you spent the night the other day then?"

"Oh my God," Elena groaned, annoyed.

"Damon, could I talk to you in the kitchen?" Stefan prompted.

Damon waved him off. "I'm having a bit too much fun right now, Stefan."

"Damon," Stefan said a bit more sternly. Damon looked over at him and his eyebrows rose. He sighed. "Fine,"

Elena watched as the two brothers got up almost in unison and walked back into the kitchen. She wasn't in much of hearing distance so she blocked them out and stared at the television in front of her.

"What the hell is your problem?" Stefan asked lowly.

"I'm not sure I know what you're referring to." Damon said, running his hand through his dark hair.

Stefan rolled his eyes. "You know exactly what you're doing, Damon."

Damon shrugged but didn't say anything.

"I'll give you twenty bucks if you leave."

"Make it thirty and I won't come back until late."

"Done," Both brothers shook hands. Stefan pulled out his wallet from his back pocket, searching for the appropriate amount of money to give to his brother. Stefan handed over thirty dollars to his brother. "Now leave,"

Damon smirked and reached for his car keys on the kitchen table. Stefan followed him as he walked to the hallway leading to the front door. He peeked through to the living room. "Always wonderful to see you, Elena."

"Fuck off, Damon." She said, without looking in his direction.

"She's a keeper." Damon smiled and headed for the door. He stopped and turned to his brother before walking out of the house. "Don't do anything I would do."

Stefan closed the front door and sighed in relief. Finally he was gone. He walked back into the living room and sat down in his previous spot.

"Sorry about that," Stefan said.

"I'm used to it." Elena said. "I just feel like every time I see him, he just becomes more and more annoying."

Stefan smiled. "Well that's Damon for ya."

Elena finally looked at him and smiled. Stefan looked into her brown eyes and could see so much. He didn't know where to start. She quickly looked away, her cheeks turning red from embarrassment.

"So what was Damon talking about? About us." She finally said, unable to looked back at Stefan.

He sighed. "Nothing, you know how he is. He's just instigating and being annoying."

Elena looked at him and was quiet for a moment. "But is there something between us, Stefan?"

He could feel his heart beater at a faster pace. He watched her face to see if she was sincerely asking this question. All he could see was seriousness. Fuck.

"I- Well, I- I don't know, Elena."

Elena turned her body completely to face him. Stefan couldn't avoid her gaze now. He watched her twiddle her thumbs in her lap. She wasn't looking at him. She was quiet.

"Elena –"

"Kiss me," She said looking up to face him.

"What?"

"I want you to kiss me."

"But- But why?"

Stefan was dreaming. He was going into shock. _Something_ was happening because this was not real. This wasn't reality. This wasn't happening. Or was it?

"It'll confirm everything." She simply said.

Stefan didn't need to be asked again. He didn't want another explanation. He just did it. In a swift moment, his lips were on hers, his hand pulling her face closer to him. To his excitement, she kissed him back and it felt amazing. As much as Stefan had dreamed this moment, it could never beat the real thing.

Her hands found his neck, pulling herself closer to him. She adjusted her body position without leaving his lips. Stefan kissed her eagerly, passionately, hungrily until she pulled away. They both attempted to catch their breath, heaving loudly.

"Um," she mumbled.

"Wow," he breathed.

"Yeah…"


End file.
